Chelsea players and staff members were reportedly not best pleased by the confirmation of Antonio Rudiger’s departure.
According to The Times, the announcement of Rudiger’s exit ‘frustrated’ those closely connected to the senior squad.
Thomas Tuchel declared on Sunday shortly after the 1-0 win against West Ham United that his fellow countryman will be leaving the club in the summer.
Why is Rudiger leaving?
The German international seems destined to join Real Madrid, as they have apparently battered away all the competition for the defender’s signature.
In this scenario, Rudiger will head to Spain as a free agent, following a failure to agree on a new contract with Chelsea.
He wanted a pay rise to accurately reflect his performances under Thomas Tuchel and his importance to the team.
Whilst the board did offer an increased wage, it didn’t quite meet the requirements of the centre-back’s representatives.
Further discussions were halted by Chelsea being put on the market by Roman Abramovich.
Real Madrid on Rudiger’s mind
Although the new owners could be unveiled soon, Rudiger simply could not wait for their arrival to make a decision on his future.
Eyeing one last big payout, he has seemingly settled upon Madrid to make his dreams come true.
The timing of the transfer exposure certainly could’ve been better.
Chelsea’s much-needed victory over West Ham was quickly overshadowed by the news regarding Rudiger’s move.
And with still several games left to play, most noticeably the FA Cup final, there’s no certainty the 29-year-old’s focus will be trained on domestic matters.
Could he be blamed for having images of Spanish sunshine swirling around his head?
Fortunately for Tuchel, the centre-half doesn’t seem like the type to be distracted easily.
Rudiger will almost certainly give his all from now until the campaign’s conclusion.
Signing off with an FA Cup winners medal wouldn’t be a bad way to go.
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